I read somewhere else that 80% of people working in Social Media had been in their job for less than 2 years. Bear that in mind the next time you see a profile statiing "Black Belt", "Ninja" , "Guru" or "Expert" ! #socmed

We’re quick to grab any and all WordPress plugins that can give the blog an extra edge or can wire up a feature we’d love to test. Whenever we dream something up to try on the blog, the first place we turn is WordPress plugins. We’ve collected quite the list of favorites. How about you?

As we’ve tried and tested new plugins on the blog, you’ve likely noticed new pieces and parts popping up on our pages—slideups, social share buttons, CTAs, and more. We get asked quite often about which plugins we use. So we thought we’d share!

Below is the list of plugins that power the Buffer blog, along with a handful of others that are on our to-try list....

Is Twitter an effective marketing tool for brands? What sorts of challenges are businesses facing on Twitter? According to a recent survey conducted by SMMU, 40 percent of brands consider Twitter to be an effective marketing tool. Brands face a number of challenges (like building an audience, developing strong content, etc.) using Twitter as a social media marketing tool, with measuring Return-on-Investment being the greatest challenge.

In addition, most brands have not used Twitter's paid services. In fact, some brands were unaware that they were available. Among Twitter features being used on a regular basis, Vine remains underutilized, despite the rise in popularity of video marketing. Check out this infographic for all the findings from the survey....
Via Jeff Domansky

These are quite interesting statistics! I am one of those 52% wanting special offers/promotions and also the 33% that are hoping for freebies! I tend to only like a brand on Facebook or Twitter if I initially see advertising for a competition /discount. Lots of brands make statuses saying something along the lines of "like this status for the opportunity to win......" So if I see something like that I will automatically like it and then generally forget about the brand until something promoting the brand pops up on my news feed, where I will more often than not unlike the page! The fact that only 33% of a branders "Likers" are current customers is really interesting, to me that shows that the facebook page is creating brand awareness for the other 62% that are not initial customers. So all though majority of that 62% just wants something free our a special offer, they are still learning and become more aware of the brand which is a huge positive.

If you're a Mac power user, application launcher Alfred is a powerful way to get things done with click-saving workflows and a few swift keystrokes. Last year, a powerful workflow system was added to Alfred, and since then some very dedicated and creative minds have added dozens of workflows that can be downloaded used immediately. We have previously…

Thanks Diane for your input. I agree with your sentiments, it's like a runaway train. Kids & Adults need ultimately to strive for "balance" probably one of the hardest skills to achieve. Cheers Michele

In my previous post, I wrote about the Poogle, the new breed of marketer, combining P&G’s and Google marketing skills. It’s easy to pinpoint the moment the Poogle was born. It was 2 years ago, when Google published “Wining the Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT),” its take on how buyers make purchasing decisions today.P&G’s “First Moment of Truth” (FMOT) defined the crucial moment when the consumer chooses one brand over the other, a focal point for traditional marketing (in addition to the second moment of truth, the consumer’s experience with the product).

Today, however, online conversations, social network-based recommendations, the immediacy of the mobile experience, the digital archiving of the word of mouth, all contribute to a new buying behavior. Google argued that as consumers are bombarded with information about products from these and other new sources (most not directly controlled by the marketer), marketing must pay attention to ZMOT, a new critical moment that happens much before FMOT. First impressions count and could happen when they are not at all related to a specific buying decision....

Facebook rose to dominance in 2008, and remains the top social network five years later. That’s an unprecedented run, and despite constant criticisms about design changes and new features, it doesn't look like the social network will be dethroned any time soon.

But that doesn’t mean we’ve reached the end of history for social networks. Several new ones have launched, such as Pinterestand Vine, and others have re-invented themselves. While Facebook is king, there’s still room for niche alternatives, particularly those that emphasis images or video rather than an infinitely updating news feed.

Sometimes I feel as if there are too many social media platforms. There is now a website or an app for virtually anything you can think of. More social media platforms will still be developed in the future, however I feel that soon people will run out of innovative ideas to capture an audience that is already tied up in multiple platforms.

No man (or woman) is an island, and business owners need to seek advice and guidance from other successful business owners, if they themselves are to become successful in their respective endeavours.

One of the best ways to become better as a business owner, is to apply relevant advice that other business owners have successfully applied to their businesses, that they themselves received from others who went before them.

This excellent article, drawing on feedback from 13 successful Australian entrepreneurs, offers 13 great pieces of sound business advice that any business owner can take on board to improve the performance of their own business.

Did you know that Facebook users are more inclined to like photos than text posts? According to a HubSpot study, pictures get liked 53% more often than the average post. Human beings are visual animals. We love to look at pictures and videos, and that is a fact your business needs to exploit. There are…

Twitter just rolled out two fresh "photo enhancing" features that ramp up your social friendships. Now, with the newly introduced photo tagging, you can tag people in your photos. The other welcome ability is that you can also include up to four photos in a tweet. Go ahead and update your Twitter iPhone and Android…

Back in May 2013, Google unveiled a new and improved beta version of Google Maps. It was nice and shiny, and had many new features. Now finally the doors are being swung wide open, and everyone will be able to get the new Google Maps on their desktops in "the coming weeks". So apart from…

With Facebook turning 10 recently, you may have realised just how long you've been a part of the social network yourself. In that time, you probably made friends with lots and lots of people for many different reasons — some may not be very relevant anymore. It's probably time to clean up your feed, isn't it?…

What are the qualities that make presence on social media successful? What separates the men from the boys as far as social media is concerned? Here are 7 characteristics your social media presence must embody.

Get inspired this morning with help from three marketing experts: best-selling author Seth Godin, statistician Nate Silver, and charity: water Founder Scott Harrison.To help you start off on the right foot, we've compiled advice from three different experts who are at the forefront of marketing today. Flip through the SlideShare below for 25 inspiring quotes from statistician Nate Silver, best-selling author Seth Godin, and charity: water Founder Scott Harrison, or read the quotes in the copy below.

The success of a Facebook Page lies in the hands of its admins. Facebook Page admins are the people who are in direct contact with a Page’s fans and are in charge of promoting the brand to the online world. Whether your Page has one or many admins there are a few best practices you need to know about in order to ensure that your Page is as engaging and successful as it can be.

I read somewhere else that 80% of people working in Social Media had been in their job for less than 2 years. Bear that in mind the next time you see a profile statiing "Black Belt", "Ninja" , "Guru" or "Expert" ! #socmed

Sharing your scoops to your social media accounts is a must to distribute your curated content. Not only will it drive traffic and leads through your content, but it will help show your expertise with your followers.

Integrating your curated content to your website or blog will allow you to increase your website visitors’ engagement, boost SEO and acquire new visitors. By redirecting your social media traffic to your website, Scoop.it will also help you generate more qualified traffic and leads from your curation work.

Distributing your curated content through a newsletter is a great way to nurture and engage your email subscribers will developing your traffic and visibility.
Creating engaging newsletters with your curated content is really easy.